52 TRANSURANIC ELEMENTS IN THE ENVIRONMENT 



Further research should be conducted to estabhsh the possibihty of biomagnification 

 of plutonium in invertebrate food chains and to determine the magnitude of the uptake 

 of other transuranic nuclides. 



In freshwater systems, such as the Great Lakes, food webs are moderately simple 

 compared to those in oceans. Studies in the Great Lakes (Edgington, Wahlgren, and 

 Marshall, 1976; Bowen, 1976) indicate that, although conspicuous biomagnification of 

 plutonium occurs between water and phytoplankton, there is a net decrease of an order 

 oi magnitude for each higlier trophic level in the food chain. Results from studies at 

 Hanford U-pond, Rocky Flats, and the Miami River in Ohio are comparable to those from 

 Lake Michigan. The CR's (Table 15) reflect not only biological variation but also 

 variations in the concentration or chemical form of plutonium or americium in the water 

 column. 



TABLE 15 Accumulation of Plutonium by Aquatic Organisms Leading to Man 

 (for Fish and Shellfish Given for Muscle Only) 



*Edgington, Wahlgren, and Marshall, 1976. 



jWayman, Bartelt, and Alberts, 1977. 



ifPaine, this volume. 



§ Emery and Klopfer, 1976. 



HEyman and Trabalka, tliis volume. 



**Noshkin, 1972. 



tfHetherington et al., 1976. 



§§ND, not detected in flesh. 



